Headers on my Esteem

aggressive_anush · 31st May 2005, 21:22

I have always been wanting to get something done to my esteem from the day i got it.
I picked up a second hand 97 VX last october. Use it mainly for running around the city. Havent taken it out of bangalore yet.

The suspension was quite weak when i picked it up and after a few months of use it was almost non existant. Used to bottom on the smallest of bumps and slither around corners.

So i took it to Psycho's garage to get the work done. Completely new suspension put in and ride height increased by 1 and a half inches using spacers. But .. stability is now brilliant and there is no extra body roll at all. I was totally surprised. I had got so used to the car sliding around corners that when i took it back from the garage i couldnt believe that my turn ins were so crisp compared to what it was before. Excellent.. I was so happy with the way my car was feeling now.

I had also started wondering what i could do to get a little more performance out of the car. Was complaining to Psycho about the HUGE mid range flatspot and he said that was quite common. I was wondering what i could do engine wise. Was thinking about the Swift 1.3 GT engine swap and Iceman even suggested plonking a Baleno engine in there. But am severely strapped of cash and so those plans have to be shelved for later.

I had also asked Psycho whether a freeflow help, and he said headers would make quite a big difference. Well, i left it at that and went home quite happy with the way the car was feeling. It's got a nice exhaust note thanks to the muffler that Tom had given me some time ago. But was completely stock otherwise.

A couple of days passed and Psycho called. He told me he had got headers for my car and to drop my car in the garage on the weekend. Couldnt wait. I had just mentioned headers to Psycho and he had taken a completely pro active role in getting them. Yay.

Dropped it in on saturday morning.. well not really morning ..closer to afternoon. Getting up early on weekends is truly an ordeal that nobody should be subjected to.

Chetan was at Psycho's garage getting some work done on his car. Iceman came there a little later on. Psycho got right down to it.. immediately removing my exhaust manifold and getting the headers out from where they were stored. Aahh .. so here they were. The colour seemed to match my car too .. not that anyone would really be looking at them but kinda nice.

While Psycho was under the car, Chetan and i were fiddling with my bonnet wondering why there was always insulation tape on the bit that locks the bonnet. We managed to pull off quite a bit.

Anyways... skip forward a bit and some of the other mechanics seemed to have disappeared for lunch. Psycho had to head out for some time too, so he dropped me home and i told him that I would come back in the evening to pick the car up.

Once again i managed to waste a lot of time in the evening sitting at home doing nothing. My friend came over and we got distracted playing on his xbox. Then Psycho called and told me the car was ready and he had just taken it for a drive. Left home immediately and headed to the garage. There she was... just waiting for me. Psycho offered to take us for a drive and show us what we were meant to do with it. He floored it and man the way she moved was amazing. Such a huge improvement in so little time. Damn psycho drives well . hehe

Got back to the garage and i couldnt stop smiling. My turn to drive. The improvement to the car was unbelievable. There was more power lower down. He had told me that these headers would improve my mid range but i didnt expect it to be such a big improvement. Mid range flatspot? Whats that? The car just seems to have so much more in it now. It pulls so easily in higher gears too. I dont need to downshift to pass those pesky cabs. Aah.. this is fun. And it doesnt even require to be revved too hard to get my speedo needle moving upwards. This is the way its meant to be.

Thank Psycho a million times and he lets me off with a warning not to go crazy and kill people. Been having fun with the car since then. I was told that my mileage might go down a wee bit but i think with the car moving the way it does now it might go down much more since i cant stop having fun with it. I keep telling myself to calm down since i cant afford to blow up so much money on gas.... but damn this is fun.

So then... Been using it for a couple of days now and the car feels so much better . I should have got this done long ago. Well... better late than never. My dad and bro initially thought i had gone crazy spending money on the car, but once they drove it they had to agree it was money well spent.

All thanks to Psycho and his brilliant work. Thanks once again Psycho. The car is doing great!! And no... no incidents yet. I drive responsibly... most of the time. hehe Oh.. and also thank you Tom for giving me your muffler.. love the way the car sounds with it. And of course team-bhp too for getting me in touch with all these great guys.

Later on when i save up some money Psycho recommended porting the head and getting some better plugs in there. Looking forward to that in some time. And going by the way my car feels after this I know that its going to be even better after that.

Oh by the way.. i forgot .. I seem to have found out that those little bits of insulation tape on the inside of the bonnet lock thingy are there for a purpose... the bonnet tends to make rattling noises otherwise. Got to tape it up now

Until then.. Am just going to go and drive around a little more.

kooldude · 31st May 2005, 21:51

hey anush
congrats on your new set of headers.You can post the sound of your car's freeflow also. I also have a esteem 98 vx. I am very young and dont earn so havent still got my car's freeflow done anyways will get it done by 1 or 2 years after my savings go above 10,000 will go to automech they are the best in bombay

EVO6 · 31st May 2005, 21:55

Congrats on your new header... Enjoy the power... Its always less never enuf to satiate anyone ...

Anyways Is the header used in your car made in Bangalore ??? Also anyone are there any other better header manufacturers in India other than Automech as they dont make any stainless steel free flow systems

Revvmaster · 31st May 2005, 22:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by EVO6

Also anyone are there any other better header manufacturers in India other than Automech as they dont make any stainless steel free flow systems

Untrue. Give them a call here in Mumbai. Ask for Vivek Bhat. I personally have had an Automech job done on my previous car in Mild Steel. They do have stainless steel as well... albeit atleast 1.5 times more expensive than mild steel.

Revv

speedsatya · 31st May 2005, 22:24

hey aggressive anush,

now ur car will be really aggressive.congrats on your headers.what differnce do u feel ????details please.

and dontget carried away .drive safe.

Quote:

Originally Posted by revv

They do have stainless steel as well... albeit atleast 1.5 times more expensive than mild steel.

hey revv,
i doubt if automech makes headers in SS.they do make SS mufflers.BTW its not 1.5 times but its 3 times more expensive than MS.
yeah vivek or ajay can guide you on this.

Shan2nu · 31st May 2005, 22:33

Haha, now i'll have to drive it again. My last experience with your car wasn't really that pleasant. hehe

Do you have upgraded tyres on it? I missed the tacho last time, get that fixed too.

Shan2nu

Montoya · 31st May 2005, 22:33

Well well written.. so how does the car look any pics and yeah have ou upgraded her feet(tyres) and her alloys?? some pics please.. and yeah plonk in the Swift 1.3L GT engine fast... LOL

EVO6 · 31st May 2005, 22:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedsatya

hey aggressive anush,

now ur car will be really aggressive.congrats on your headers.what differnce do u feel ????details please.

and dontget carried away .drive safe.

hey revv,
i doubt if automech makes headers in SS.they do make SS mufflers.BTW its not 1.5 times but its 3 times more expensive than MS.
yeah vivek or ajay can guide you on this.

Ajay is a good friend of mine ... but as i said he doesnt make SS Headers .. He has started making SS Mufflers ... I had my lancer done from him in 2000 at that time he didnt even have SS muffler .. Got mine from Dubai and has it installed ... He does a good job no doubt but then again ... Nothin in SS

Mpower · 31st May 2005, 22:40

Congrats man!
I curious as to who fabricated the header....and what is the tuning length on those....because usually headers are tuned for top end and you lose power in the mid-range.

iceman91 · 31st May 2005, 22:59

mpower...the fabrication was done by psycho's boys. he calculates the lengths himself

Edmund · 1st June 2005, 00:20

Great write up anush!!!
As I was reading it I kept thinking of when my ride’s header job will be done……..
Awesome……
Drive safe......but drive hard!!!

Psycho · 1st June 2005, 10:39

Hey Anush great to know that you are enjoying the ride and also responsibly... I had mentioned that as typically when someone gets an additional rush available on the pedal the pedal always goes to the metal. Another reason why I had asked you to be more responsible was for you to adapt your driving style to the handling of the car as it has greatly changed from the setup you had.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mpower

I curious as to who fabricated the header....and what is the tuning length on those....because usually headers are tuned for top end and you lose power in the mid-range.

The headers were fabricated at my workshop and the tuning has been done for mid to mid high typical of city driving style. Also headers can be tuned for various requirements not necassarily for racing only (high revs).

PS: Please remember only headers do not give you all the power there is also the aspects of tuning and timing for that rev range which is what adds the benifits to the performance of the engine and the headers.

aggressive_anush · 1st June 2005, 20:15

Yes.. the car is infinitely more driveable in city conditions. The mid range is also really good now and the car moves without needing to be revved too hard.
And yes Psycho.. am not gonna be needlessly pushing it in the city. Once in a way when the roads are clear maybe. The handling is also really different with the new suspension now. So still getting used to it.
Shan2nu... sure thing.. drop by the next time you are in bangalore. But i dont really know if you would feel the difference since you drove it quite some time ago.. and especially since you are used to driving your VTEC . hehe. And no upgraded tyres yet. Still on the skinny stock ones. And was considering putting in a tacho too. Lets see.

anoops · 2nd June 2005, 10:56

yet another feather in pschyo's cap!!! cool stuff keshav...hey must try and meet up for another sunday drive guys!!......am begening to wonder if i should get my car there keshav..hehehe

kooldude · 2nd June 2005, 21:10

hey anoop wats the power increase after you have done the freeflow. Anyways guys can anyone tell me what will be the power increase after doing freeflow on my 65 bhp carb esteem

31st May 2005, 21:22	#1
aggressive_anush BHPian Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 98 Thanked: 2 Times	Headers on my Esteem I have always been wanting to get something done to my esteem from the day i got it. I picked up a second hand 97 VX last october. Use it mainly for running around the city. Havent taken it out of bangalore yet. The suspension was quite weak when i picked it up and after a few months of use it was almost non existant. Used to bottom on the smallest of bumps and slither around corners. So i took it to Psycho's garage to get the work done. Completely new suspension put in and ride height increased by 1 and a half inches using spacers. But .. stability is now brilliant and there is no extra body roll at all. I was totally surprised. I had got so used to the car sliding around corners that when i took it back from the garage i couldnt believe that my turn ins were so crisp compared to what it was before. Excellent.. I was so happy with the way my car was feeling now. I had also started wondering what i could do to get a little more performance out of the car. Was complaining to Psycho about the HUGE mid range flatspot and he said that was quite common. I was wondering what i could do engine wise. Was thinking about the Swift 1.3 GT engine swap and Iceman even suggested plonking a Baleno engine in there. But am severely strapped of cash and so those plans have to be shelved for later. I had also asked Psycho whether a freeflow help, and he said headers would make quite a big difference. Well, i left it at that and went home quite happy with the way the car was feeling. It's got a nice exhaust note thanks to the muffler that Tom had given me some time ago. But was completely stock otherwise. A couple of days passed and Psycho called. He told me he had got headers for my car and to drop my car in the garage on the weekend. Couldnt wait. I had just mentioned headers to Psycho and he had taken a completely pro active role in getting them. Yay. Dropped it in on saturday morning.. well not really morning ..closer to afternoon. Getting up early on weekends is truly an ordeal that nobody should be subjected to. Chetan was at Psycho's garage getting some work done on his car. Iceman came there a little later on. Psycho got right down to it.. immediately removing my exhaust manifold and getting the headers out from where they were stored. Aahh .. so here they were. The colour seemed to match my car too .. not that anyone would really be looking at them but kinda nice. While Psycho was under the car, Chetan and i were fiddling with my bonnet wondering why there was always insulation tape on the bit that locks the bonnet. We managed to pull off quite a bit. Anyways... skip forward a bit and some of the other mechanics seemed to have disappeared for lunch. Psycho had to head out for some time too, so he dropped me home and i told him that I would come back in the evening to pick the car up. Once again i managed to waste a lot of time in the evening sitting at home doing nothing. My friend came over and we got distracted playing on his xbox. Then Psycho called and told me the car was ready and he had just taken it for a drive. Left home immediately and headed to the garage. There she was... just waiting for me. Psycho offered to take us for a drive and show us what we were meant to do with it. He floored it and man the way she moved was amazing. Such a huge improvement in so little time. Damn psycho drives well . hehe Got back to the garage and i couldnt stop smiling. My turn to drive. The improvement to the car was unbelievable. There was more power lower down. He had told me that these headers would improve my mid range but i didnt expect it to be such a big improvement. Mid range flatspot? Whats that? The car just seems to have so much more in it now. It pulls so easily in higher gears too. I dont need to downshift to pass those pesky cabs. Aah.. this is fun. And it doesnt even require to be revved too hard to get my speedo needle moving upwards. This is the way its meant to be. Thank Psycho a million times and he lets me off with a warning not to go crazy and kill people. Been having fun with the car since then. I was told that my mileage might go down a wee bit but i think with the car moving the way it does now it might go down much more since i cant stop having fun with it. I keep telling myself to calm down since i cant afford to blow up so much money on gas.... but damn this is fun. So then... Been using it for a couple of days now and the car feels so much better . I should have got this done long ago. Well... better late than never. My dad and bro initially thought i had gone crazy spending money on the car, but once they drove it they had to agree it was money well spent. All thanks to Psycho and his brilliant work. Thanks once again Psycho. The car is doing great!! And no... no incidents yet. I drive responsibly... most of the time. hehe Oh.. and also thank you Tom for giving me your muffler.. love the way the car sounds with it. And of course team-bhp too for getting me in touch with all these great guys. Later on when i save up some money Psycho recommended porting the head and getting some better plugs in there. Looking forward to that in some time. And going by the way my car feels after this I know that its going to be even better after that. Oh by the way.. i forgot .. I seem to have found out that those little bits of insulation tape on the inside of the bonnet lock thingy are there for a purpose... the bonnet tends to make rattling noises otherwise. Got to tape it up now Until then.. Am just going to go and drive around a little more. Last edited by aggressive_anush : 31st May 2005 at 21:27.
	() Thanks

31st May 2005, 21:51	#2
kooldude BHPian Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Charlotte,North Carolina Posts: 282 Thanked: 0 Times	hey anush congrats on your new set of headers.You can post the sound of your car's freeflow also. I also have a esteem 98 vx. I am very young and dont earn so havent still got my car's freeflow done anyways will get it done by 1 or 2 years after my savings go above 10,000 will go to automech they are the best in bombay
	() Thanks

31st May 2005, 21:55	#3
EVO6 BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Pune Posts: 488 Thanked: 13 Times	Congrats on your new header... Enjoy the power... Its always less never enuf to satiate anyone ... Anyways Is the header used in your car made in Bangalore ??? Also anyone are there any other better header manufacturers in India other than Automech as they dont make any stainless steel free flow systems
	() Thanks

31st May 2005, 22:33	#6
Shan2nu Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Hubli - Karnata Posts: 5,533 Thanked: 127 Times View My Garage	Haha, now i'll have to drive it again. My last experience with your car wasn't really that pleasant. hehe Do you have upgraded tyres on it? I missed the tacho last time, get that fixed too. Shan2nu
	() Thanks

31st May 2005, 22:33	#7
Montoya BANNED Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Best City In India Mumbai Posts: 665 Thanked: Once	Well well written.. so how does the car look any pics and yeah have ou upgraded her feet(tyres) and her alloys?? some pics please.. and yeah plonk in the Swift 1.3L GT engine fast... LOL
	() Thanks

31st May 2005, 22:40	#9
Mpower Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 10,399 Thanked: 1,735 Times View My Garage	Congrats man! I curious as to who fabricated the header....and what is the tuning length on those....because usually headers are tuned for top end and you lose power in the mid-range.
	() Thanks

31st May 2005, 22:59	#10
iceman91 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: melbourne/banga Posts: 1,961 Thanked: 36 Times View My Garage	mpower...the fabrication was done by psycho's boys. he calculates the lengths himself
	() Thanks

1st June 2005, 00:20	#11
Edmund BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Stuttgart, Germany. Posts: 831 Thanked: 175 Times View My Garage	Awesome write up! Great write up anush!!! As I was reading it I kept thinking of when my ride’s header job will be done…….. Awesome…… Drive safe......but drive hard!!! Last edited by Edmund : 1st June 2005 at 00:27. Reason: Font mistake!!!
	() Thanks

1st June 2005, 20:15	#13
aggressive_anush BHPian Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 98 Thanked: 2 Times	Yes.. the car is infinitely more driveable in city conditions. The mid range is also really good now and the car moves without needing to be revved too hard. And yes Psycho.. am not gonna be needlessly pushing it in the city. Once in a way when the roads are clear maybe. The handling is also really different with the new suspension now. So still getting used to it. Shan2nu... sure thing.. drop by the next time you are in bangalore. But i dont really know if you would feel the difference since you drove it quite some time ago.. and especially since you are used to driving your VTEC . hehe. And no upgraded tyres yet. Still on the skinny stock ones. And was considering putting in a tacho too. Lets see. Last edited by aggressive_anush : 1st June 2005 at 20:17.
	() Thanks

2nd June 2005, 10:56	#14
anoops BHPian Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: bangalore Posts: 182 Thanked: 4 Times	yet another feather in pschyo's cap!!! cool stuff keshav...hey must try and meet up for another sunday drive guys!!......am begening to wonder if i should get my car there keshav..hehehe
	() Thanks

2nd June 2005, 21:10	#15
kooldude BHPian Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Charlotte,North Carolina Posts: 282 Thanked: 0 Times	hey anoop wats the power increase after you have done the freeflow. Anyways guys can anyone tell me what will be the power increase after doing freeflow on my 65 bhp carb esteem
	() Thanks